Brunswick sculptor wins 2019 Tesselaar Sculpture Prize

A Brunswick sculptor has claimed one of the most lucrative art prizes in Victoria for his spiritual work Rising Angel. The 55-year-old artist says he was inspired by the idea of the transformation of the human form.

Brunswick artist Michael Sibel has won the 2019 Tesselaar Sculpture Prize. Picture: Ellen Smith

Brunswick sculptor Michael Sibel has taken out the prestigious Tesselaar Sculpture Prize for 2019.

It is one of the richest prizes a sculptor can win in Victoria, with Mr Sibel pocketing $20,000 for his piece entitled Rising Angel.

Brunswick sculptor Michael Sibel artwork Rising Angel.

Mr Sibel, 55, said the work took him a couple of months to sculpt, starting by working in plaster to refine his idea before casting it in bronze.

“I think it’s quite a spiritual piece where it is really lifting from the ground,” he said.

“I started with a fundamental idea based on the human figure and it really is about the sculpture reaching or ascending in some form.

“This work was inspired by a self questioning and the transformation of the human form during this search.”

MORE:

$2.8M BROADMEADOWS SES CENTRE PLANS UNVEILED

‘MELBOURNE’S WORST STREET’ FACING FIX-UP LEGAL FIGHT

MELBOURNE’S TOP 10 FISH AND CHIPS REVEALED

Mr Sibel said he had been in the art world for his whole life.

“I started when I was 18-years-old and been in and out of it for my whole life,” he said.

“All up I have been going about 30-years now and there has been great encouragement along the way which has kept me going.”

The 2019 Tesselaar Sculpture Prize winner.

Exhibition curator Mark Cowie congratulated Mr Sibel on creating such a sophisticated

and thought-provoking contemporary artwork.

“I continued to be drawn to this entry,” he said.

“One of the major strengths of Mr Sibel’s remarkable piece is the subtle way that is sits between both figuration and abstraction.

“It seems to reach for another place, transcending the confines of the ground, which in turn signifies a desire to reach a further or higher spiritual plane.”